Aizawl: A fresh outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) has led to the death of more than 510 pigs in Mizoram, authorities confirmed on Saturday.
The outbreak has affected 13 villages in the Lawngtlai and Mamit districts over the past two weeks, causing alarm among local farmers.
According to officials from the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department (AHVD), two teams have already culled around 100 pigs and piglets in response to the outbreak, which was confirmed on March 20 following laboratory tests conducted at the Northeast Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (NERDDL) in Guwahati.
The disease was first reported in Lawngtlai, which shares unfenced borders with Myanmar and Bangladesh.
It has since spread to Mamit, which shares borders with both Tripura and Bangladesh.
The state government is closely monitoring the situation and taking preventive measures to stop the further spread of the disease to unaffected areas.
Last year, Mizoram faced significant financial losses due to ASF, amounting to Rs 336.49 crore, with around 15,000 pigs dying and 24,200 culled to contain the outbreak.
Experts suspect that the current ASF outbreak may have originated from pigs or pork imported from neighbouring Myanmar, Bangladesh, or other northeastern states.
Mizoram shares a 510-km long unfenced border with Myanmar and a 318-km border with Bangladesh, making it particularly vulnerable to cross-border transmission of the disease.
Since the onset of ASF in mid-March 2021, the disease has had a devastating impact on pig farming in the state.
In 2021 alone, approximately 33,417 pigs and piglets died due to ASF, with an additional 12,568 culled.
In 2022, the numbers were similarly high, with 12,795 pigs and piglets dead, and 11,686 culled. In 2023, 1,139 pigs died and 980 were culled.
ALSO READ: Meghalaya CM encourages youth to drive innovation through science, technology
The cumulative financial losses due to ASF since 2021 have totalled Rs 896.69 crore. In response, the state government has provided compensation to hundreds of affected families.
While ASF is highly contagious among pigs and poses a major threat to the local pork industry, it does not affect humans.
Pork is a staple meat in the northeastern region, with an annual business valued between Rs 8,000 and 10,000 crore.
The ASF crisis continues to present significant economic challenges for local communities and farmers, as they grapple with the financial strain caused by the disease.
